Hello World! Welcome Friends! Time is of the essence when it comes to selling a vacant home. A vacant home is an expense every day it sits vacant and unused. Even if there is no mortgage on the home, there are still expenses related to property taxes, insurance, utilities, maintenance, HOA fees, etc. that can still really add up.
And because it’s harder for potential buyers to imagine their lives in a completely empty house, vacant homes are often more difficult to sell than occupied homes. If you’re trying to sell a vacant home, it’s critical you avoid these seven mistakes that could be a huge turnoff to potential buyers.
1. Leaving the Home Completely Empty
Your home is vacant, which obviously means nobody is living in it. This doesn’t mean it has to sit completely empty when it’s on the market though. Staging a vacant home with tasteful furniture gives potential buyers a chance to envision themselves living in your home.
Buyers make decisions based on emotions, so seeing where the TV goes, how a bed fits in the master bedroom, and even how towels look in the guest bathroom will make buyers feel more at home and increase their desire to actually want to live there.
2. Not Getting Rid of Dead Bugs
There is nothing more unsightly in a vacant home than bug corpses on the countertops and floors. Bugs are not only gross, they can cause severe health problems and structural damage to a home. Potential home buyers understand this, and it’s incredibly difficult for them to look past dead bugs when trying to imagine themselves living in a home. Potential homebuyers won’t notice the expensive granite countertops or the imported tiles in the shower if they’re greeted by dead spiders and mosquitoes around the front door. This is why pest control is so important when it comes to selling a vacant home.
Before you move out, hire a reputable pest control company to eliminate any potential pest problems. You’ll also want to make regular trips to the house to make sure there are no dead bugs around. And if your house stays on the market for a while, keep the pest control company coming back to eliminate any new problems.
3. Not Taking The Best Pictures
Most homebuyers start their search online. Your home needs to stand out from the competition, and the best way to do this is through pictures. Hire a professional photographer to take pictures for you. Be sure to schedule a time of day when there is plenty of natural light, and take pictures from the angles that show each room at its best. Ask yourself what makes this home stand out from the rest and highlight those features.
Be sure your home is professionally staged before taking pictures to ensure it look its best.
4. Not Taking Time for Landscaping
Curb appeal is real. No matter how beautiful the interior is, if people don’t feel good when driving up to your home, they’re going to enter it with negative preconceived notions. Keep the lawn mowed, the bushes trimmed, and the weeds out. If you’ve moved from the area, hire a landscaping company to manage this for you.
5. Not Replacing Fixtures, Light Bulbs, and More
The little details matter. Take the time to replace broken or dated doorknobs, light fixtures, switch plates, drawer pulls, and faucets. Keep all light bulbs in working order. These certainly won’t be the deciding factors in a home purchase, but if these items are obviously dated or in disrepair, a potential homebuyer may have trouble looking past them — souring their opinion of the entire home.
6. Not Cleaning Every Corner
An empty home must be spotless because every dirty detail will be noticed otherwise. Even if you’ve decided to stage the home, there will still be plenty of empty space for potential buyers’ eyes to wander. Wash the windows, dust the baseboards, clean behind the toilets, and more. And check in regularly to make sure dust isn’t accumulating anywhere. Hire a house cleaner to come regularly if you need to.
7. Never Opening the Windows
A vacant home can get musty quickly. Running the air conditioner or heater will help to keep odors neutral, but you should also regularly air out the home to keep it feeling fresh and smelling good.
Be careful not to make these critical mistakes when selling a vacant home. Recognize what people want to see and feel in a potential home so that you can keep your vacant home in tiptop shape and get it sold as quickly as possible
Click the links below for any posts you may have missed!
The Sunday Showcase from Make it Pretty Monday
Shopping for the House: Latest Purchases
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Toodles,
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